Bat for Lashes: The Haunted Man
Bat for Lashes: The Haunted Man– Thirty-two-year-old Brit Natasha Khan, otherwise known as Bat for Lashes, knows exactly what she’s doing. Just like those strategically placed body parts of her male counterpart on the album cover of her newest LP The Haunted Man, released this month, each element of her music is carefully placed and imaginatively squashed together. Her lyrics are poetry, and her backing tracks jump from tribal drums to strings to choral chant. It’s varied and interesting, though not exactly hummable. Her melodies follow the same zany progression that guarantees that Florence Welch will always be one of the coolest singers to listen to, but she will never really be pop.
Pop clearly isn’t what Bat for Lashes is going for, though. There’s not a catchy hook in this entire album, but chances are if you’re digging artists like Florence and Imogen Heap and Bjork, you’ll find these tracks enchanting. ‘Laura’, a piano ballad, is smooth and sweet, while ‘All Your Gold’ is a funkier, but it all washes together into Khan’s soprano range and wandering progression. She has range and vision, and though she may never top any Billboard charts, she’s warmly embraced as a fascinating indie songwriter. 7/10